Summary of conformance of U.S. aquaculture management to the FAO Aquaculture Guidelines [17] based on an assessment conducted by a multi-stakeholder steering committee and the authors [21].

“Topics of Pertinence” are extracted from the FAO Aquaculture Guidelines. Conformance of each “Topic of Pertinence” is described with ● indicating conformance verified by internal evidence, ●● by outcome evidence, and ●●● by independent evidence. Solid symbols (●) indicate strong evidence in all regions and for all sectors under U.S. management jurisdiction, semi-solid symbols (◒) indicate conformance with variable evidence among regions or sectors (i.e., strong evidence in some but not in others), and empty symbols (○) indicate lack of evidence. INT = internal evidence; OUT = outcome evidence; IND = independent evidence.